


After the greatest show

by rosesggu



Category: Pentagon (Korea Band)
Genre: Alternate Universe - High School, Cute Ending, Fluff, I Don't Even Know, I'm Bad At Tagging, M/M, Musicals, Singing, Strangers to Lovers, Tooth-Rotting Fluff
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-01-22
Updated: 2020-01-22
Packaged: 2021-02-27 07:27:01
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 12,670
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22363333
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/rosesggu/pseuds/rosesggu
Summary: “I think I’m the last one.”That was the first thing the boy said and Jinho had already entirely lost control over everything happening in his brain that moment.The boy who had entered was of average height, his head was covered in brown curls and he wore a plain white shirt tucked into a pair of washed out blue jeans. He has a really small waist Jinho noticed, quickly erasing that thought.The boy, who Jinho had never seen before, had a calm and warm voice and Jinho couldn’t help but stare at him for a while.
Relationships: Jo Jinho | Jino/Yeo Changgu | Yeo One, Kang Hyunggu | Kino/Yan An, Ko Shinwon/Lee Hwitaek | Hui
Comments: 7
Kudos: 51





	After the greatest show

“The greatest Showman? Are you sure? That’s a really complex one.” Yanan said pensively, playing with a pen as he lay across the couch of Jinho’s living room.

“Yeah… I already have ideas which scenes I want to keep and which ones I can leave away.” Jinho replied.

“He’s seen that goddamn movie so often he must be able to write the dialogues from memory.” Shinwon claimed, sitting on an armchair with his legs crossed, eating the apple slices Jinho’s mother had made earlier.

Jinho sent him an annoyed look.

“Keep mocking me and I’ll tell Hwitaek that you have written his name with hearts into your notebook for the entirety of our chemistry class yesterday.” he hissed at his friend who immediately tensed in his seat and threw a pillow at him.

“Don’t you dare!”

“You two are hopeless cases.” Yanan commented, a light smile resting on his face as he started scrolling through his phone.

Jinho groaned. “Yeah, you have a boyfriend. We get it.”

Yanan stuck out his tongue. “You’re just jealous.” he claimed, his words followed by a whine from Shinwon.

“Hwitaek doesn’t even see me like that.”

“I wouldn’t be so sure there.” Jinho said. “You know what, you should ask him to join the musical, it’ll be fun and you two can grow closer when we rehearse.”

“You’re just desperate for actors.” Shinwon commented. Jinho laughed.

“No, actors are desperate for a director and coach like me.”

Yanan grabbed one of the apple slices and ate it, observing his two bickering friends.

“Don’t you worry about them actors, they’ll come if they know Won, Hyunggu and I are playing too.” he said with full confidence. Shinwon nodded in agreement, getting up from the armchair to join Jinho who was sitting on the floor.

It was ironic that Jinho was such a small boy when his two best friends were such tall and lanky boys with legs twice as long as Jinho’s arms. Especially considering that all three of them were the most shy boys and had ended up together by chance, being assigned as group project partners one time years ago and having been inseparable ever since.

Jinho hated crowds. He hated being surrounded by too many strangers and he hated being the center of attention. He had yet to find an explanation for his love of acting.

Maybe it was the ability to let go of being himself, to turn into someone entirely different who loved and lived in their own way.

Maybe it was having his friends on stage with him and creating an illusion for an evening, allowing the audience to make memories and enjoy forgetting about the real world for a while.

Maybe it was the pride in his parents’ eyes when he met them backstage after a performance, them telling him over and over how great he did and how proud they were.

Maybe it was the fact that after the previous club leader had graduated Jinho had taken on the task of organising things, teaching his classmates what he’d learned in several years of private acting classes as well as being in the club for years.

Maybe it was the hugs, smiles and tears of happiness after a premiere, everyone thanking him over and over for making it possible.

Jinho now allowed Shinwon to engulf him in a tight hug, the taller boy’s arms holding onto the shorter one with all his might.

“This will be great, it always is with you, Ji.” he said, his voice low and calm and the smile on his face warm as ever. Jinho immediately felt reassured, smiling back at his friend.

“Hey! I want to join!” Yanan complained loudly, getting up from the couch and practically tackling the other two, leaving Jinho squeezed in between his two taller best friends. They all erupted into laughter, holding each other tightly like they always did, like it made them all feel the most comfortable and like they all needed it.

“You two shouldn’t get boyfriends.” Yanan stated. “I’m scared you won’t be ready to cuddle like this anymore when you do.”

Shinwon laughed and soon the two others joined in. “You’re stupid if you think you’re ever gonna get rid of my hugs, Nanie.”

Yanan hummed, tightening his arms a bit around his friends’ bodies.

The three boys then decided to order some food, their choice landing on pizza.

“To our little Ji and an amazing musical.” Shinwon said later, holding his pizza slice up as if he wanted to do a toast. Yanan and Jinho did the same, giggling.

“I love you guys.” Jinho said.

“We love you too, Ji.” Yanan replied.

-  
“Thank you! Would you tell the next person they can come in?” Jinho told the bubbly and bright girl who’d just sang her heart out to him and she smiled, nodding before she disappeared behind the door.

The auditions were taking place in the school’s assembly hall, Jinho had only been able to book it for that afternoon and evening so he felt the pressure of having to get everything done within a span of five hours.

Shinwon and Yanan were there too, one of them on each side while Hyunggu sat on an extra chair next to his boyfriend, munching chips and every few minutes offering some to the others.

So far auditions had been going well, a lot of people were interested and Jinho had been able to find enough actors to almost entirely fill the cast. Still, he was keeping a few roles open because he was looking for something specific in the actors playing those which he had yet to find.

Yanan and Hyunggu had complained loudly when they heard they were to play the two daughters of the Barnums, “We’re boyfriends, not siblings and certainly not that short!” Yanan had whined but after a few soft words from Hyunggu about how it’d still be fun because they could spend time together this way the tall boy calmed down a little, smiling again after his boyfriend left a kiss on his lips.

Shinwon clearly was not a huge fan of the two other boys and their open gestures of affection, he kept groaning and rolling his eyes.

Jinho knew that Shinwon secretly found them very sweet but due to his own romantic frustration he would never admit that.

The door opened slowly and the next student stepped inside, looking down shyly. Jinho heard Shinwon gasp next to him.

“Taek!” he voiced out and for a moment or two him and Hwitaek looked at each other, lips parted as if they both wanted to say something.

Jinho decided to break the silence before his friend could do something he may regret later on so he loudly cleared his throat and said “Hey Hwitaek! Good to see you here.”

“Hi Jinho!” Hwitaek now turned to face him, a kind smile on his face.

“I didn’t know you liked acting!” Hyunggu said, his voice hinting at his curiosity. Hwitaek laughed, nervously scratching the back of his head.

“Ah, well, I never really tried it before but… I like singing and I love The Greatest Showman… and your plays always turn out amazing so I thought… why not.” he explained. Jinho smiled.

“That’s so nice! I’m sure you’ll fit right in. Do you have something prepared?”

Hwitaek nodded nervously. “Well, yes, I wanted to sing ‘A million dreams’. Is that okay?”

“Of course! That’s one of my favourites.”

Hwitaek smiled, clearing his throat and taking a few deep breaths. He then closed his eyes, fitting the lyrics of the song and began to sing, his voice steady and beautiful, leaving goosebumps all over Jinho’s skin.

Everyone at the school knew of Hwitaek’s talent for singing, his unique and powerful voice as well as his ability to write lyrics and melodies himself. He rarely ever displayed it publicly but he regularly posted his own songs as well as covers on social media, always accompanied by a video of him playing the piano while singing or simply sitting there, singing his heart out.

Shinwon and Hwitaek had been some type of friends or acquaintances ever since they could talk, having been in the same preschool and in the same classes ever since but Shinwon had always expressed a rather unusual fondness and admiration for the other and in this moment it was so easy to see that he was head over heels with Hwitaek, with the way his eyes sparkled and the smile on his lips couldn’t possibly grow any wider.

Jinho had an idea.

When Hwitaek finished he chuckled nervously while the four other boys applauded. He bowed slightly.

When the noise had died down Jinho pondered shortly. He then began speaking again.

“Okay… Shinwon can you stand next to him really quickly? I am envisioning something.” he said. His friend gave him a desperate look but still got up and slowly walked up to Hwitaek.

“Perfect. Now, you both know who sings which part, right? Hwitaek, you’ll do Phineas and Shinwon you’ll sing Charity’s parts. I want you to look into each other’s eyes while you sing it. Let’s see if this works out as well as I think.”

Both boys’ cheeks flushed visibly and Hwitaek almost impulsively grabbed Shinwon’s hands. “Is… is that okay?” he asked quietly but still loudly enough for Jinho to hear. Shinwon nodded.

Hwitaek took a deep breath and caught Shinwon’s eyes before starting to sing this time.

It was even better than Jinho had imagined. The two had an almost magical chemistry and Jinho could swear they almost made the words they sang sound sincere.

Once they were done everything was clear for Jinho.

“You two have to be Phineas and Charity, my god, that was beautiful. You work together fantastically.” he finally said and Shinwon gasped while Hwitaek blushed even further.

“That’s… wow, I didn’t expect… such a huge role… thank you, Jinho.”

“You’re very welcome, I think you two are the perfect fits for this.”

Hwitaek waved shortly and smiled as he left the room.

“I’m going to make your life a miserable hell, Jo Jinho.” Shinwon gritted through his teeth as he returned to his seat.

“Ah come on, he did you a favour!” Yanan said. Shinwon huffed.

-  
“I think I’m the last one.”

That was the first thing the boy said and Jinho had already entirely lost control over everything happening in his brain that moment.

The boy who had entered was of average height, his head was covered in brown curls and he wore a plain white shirt tucked into a pair of washed out blue jeans. He has a really small waist Jinho noticed, quickly erasing that thought.

The boy, who Jinho had never seen before, had a calm and warm voice and Jinho couldn’t help but stare at him for a while.

“Ji, say something.” Shinwon whispered, ripping the other boy out of his trance. Jinho cleared his throat.

“Hey I… nice to meet you! I don’t think I’ve seen you around before. Would you mind telling me your name?”

The boy smiled, his cheeks becoming beautifully round as he did.

“Yeo Changgu.” he said. “Nice to meet you too. Jinho, right?”

“Y-yeah, how did you know?” Jinho stuttered, suddenly feeling a lot warmer than before, trying to collect himself.

“My friend Wooseok… he is a big fan of your plays.”

“Really? He’s never auditioned though.” Shinwon commented. Changgu smiled again and Jinho attentively watched his lips move as words spilled out of him so ever beautifully, dripping of honey.

“He’s… rather shy. He thinks he’s not fit for the stage.”

“But you are?” Yanan asked, only realising how harsh he sounded after Changgu’s smile faded and he looked to the ground.

“Well, I don’t know… I just thought maybe I could try…”

“And that’s exactly what theatre is about. I think you’ll be great. Do you have something prepared?” Jinho said before his friends could make him more unsure.

Changgu nodded slowly. Jinho smiled at him.

“I… I don’t know what role would fit me but I like Never Enough, I hope that’s okay.” his voice had become quiet and Jinho felt the need to change that immediately so he nodded energetically.

“That’s perfectly fine! Just go ahead, show us what you can do, I’m sure you’ll be amazing.”

Changgu nodded, smiling once more and swallowing before closing his eyes and beginning to sing.

Jinho couldn’t possibly describe the emotions swelling up in his chest that moment, feeling starstruck the second Changgu started singing. The soft curls didn’t help Jinho’ infatuation… god, those curls.

Yeo Changgu’s voice was a serene one, clear and warm like the first sun rays on a spring day grazing the flower petals, like a candle burning up on a winter night, like the comforting hold of a loved one.

Yeo Changgu’s voice was a beautiful one, one of an angel, one that burned itself into every part of Jinho’s soul.

Jinho didn’t ever want to stop hearing it.

It was over before Jinho had really realised it started and Changgu turned silent, biting his bottom lip, fingers crossed in front of his stomach.

“That was beautiful!” Hyunggu said loudly, clapping excitedly, Shinwon and Yanan joining.

Changgu pressed his lips together, cheeks a light pink. “Thank you.” he muttered. Then he looked at Jinho, directly at Jinho.

“Changgu…” latter started, breathlessly.

“Yes?”

“You… you’re incredible. I… Phillip Carlyle… I already gave the Barnums away but my god you… you have to be him.”

“O-okay, thank… thank you, I did not expect this.” Changgu replied, his cheeks and ears steadily turning redder. Jinho found it endearing.

“No, no, thank you… you’re amazing.” Jinho told him. The curly headed boy blushed some more, hands playing with the fabric of his shirt.

“I… I’ll see you soon then?” Changgu asked. Jinho answered too quickly.

“Yes! Absolutely, of course… I mean… yes… our first meeting is next week but… I’ll leave information on the notice board… See you then, Changgu.”

The boy nodded, waving shyly and saying a quick “Bye!” before he left the room.

Jinho released a breath he’d subconsciously held while watching him leave. Yanan started laughing.

“Ji, did you see a ghost or did you just fall in love with that boy?” he asked, audibly amused. Hyunggu snickered.

Jinho frowned. “I did not fall in love with him! He just is… pretty… and a really good singer!”

“Our little Ji has a crush!” Shinwon giggled. Jinho groaned.

“I do not! And even if I did you’d be the last person to have the right to tease me for it.” he huffed. Shinwon went to hug him tightly.

“I’m just kidding… you know I love you loads, right Ji?”

“M’yeah I know… I love you too.” Jinho replied, voice muffled by the fabric of Shinwon’s t-shirt.

“God, I am so excited for this play.” Yanan said, a sheepish smile on his face. I hope everything works out Jinho thought to himself. It had to work out, it would work out. He had his friends with him after all.

-  
The first meeting of the play’s cast was on a wednesday evening, five minutes before seven the door closed as the last person entered.

Jinho was sitting on the practice room’s floor, legs crossed and chin on his palms.

Bit by bit everyone gathered in a circle around him and stopped their talks, instead looking at Jinho expectantly.

“Hey everyone… I hope all of you had dinner before coming?” he started, earning nods from most of his peers.

“Good. I’m not gonna make today unnecessarily long since it’s just our first time. I’m gonna hand you all the script. Well… in our meetings I want to… I want to focus on the songs and choreographies first… since that’s the tougher part… the acting can’t really go wrong if you learn your lines more or less.” he said, suddenly feeling his chest tighten.

He’d met eyes with Changgu who was separated from Jinho by five other students and now the curly haired one was smiling at him gently.

Jinho was taken back to the present before he could get lost in Changgu’s eyes by Yanan’s finger poking his arm.

“Ji!” he whispered. Jinho cleared his throat, looking away from Changgu.

“I… I wrote the script myself… had to cut some scenes from the movie out and change a few up but if any of you have suggestions on what we could or should do differently you can always come up to me at our meetings or whenever you see me. Our meetings… we’ll meet every wednesday at this time and work for about 90 minutes but that may differ from time to time, it depends on how quickly we get things done. I also… I already reserved the hall so our performance nights are decided. They're in ten months so we don't have a lot of time but I am more than sure that we can do this.”

“He talks a lot but what Ji means is that we’re gonna rock this.” Shinwon said, earning laughter from the whole group while Jinho felt more than embarrassed, wanting to hide.

He then handed out the scripts and sent everyone home with the task to read through it and take notes on their character’s behaviour and personality traits.

Slowly the room started to empty while Jinho just sat there, knees pulled up.

“We’re gonna grab some food, are you coming?” Hyunggu asked him, hand linked with Yanan’s. Jinho shook his head.

“Not hungry, you go and have fun! I’m just gonna turn the lights off and then I’ll head home.” he replied. Yanan ruffled his hair in response and waved as he left together with his boyfriend as well as Shinwon (and Hwitaek?)

“Jinho?”

The practice room was entirely empty… except for Jinho and Yeo Changgu who now was standing next to him.

Jinho almost choked on his spit and got up in a hurry, way faster than intended so he shortly felt dizzy.

“Y-yes, yes, that’s me, I’m Jinho, you’re Changgu… that was weird of me I’m sorry, I’m tired. How can I help you?” the words seemed to come out of his mouth incoherently and he wanted to disappear in the ground.

Changgu smiled softly.

“Uh… well I… maybe this is a bit much to ask but I was… well, I was wondering if you’d be willing to give me private lessons? It’s just… well, it’s that I haven’t really acted much before and I’m afraid I’d make a fool of myself… but I totally understand if you’re too busy for that.” Changgu had begun stuttering, blushing so softly that Jinho thought he was going insane.

“Yes, yes! Of course I’d be willing to, I can do that… we can do that. I… when?” Jinho responded, once again speaking too fast and stumbling over his words.

“I uhm… maybe friday evening?” Changgu asked, his voice low. Jinho nodded.

“Sure! That’s fine, that’s great. I… I have the key for this room, I think it’s free on fridays from five to six, is that fine with you?”

The other boy smiled, nodding. He seemed to ponder for a short while before clearing his throat.

“Could I have your number though? In case something comes in the way?”

Jinho’s jaw dropped, he inhaled sharply and in a shockingly squeaky voice he answered “Yes! Of course, yes.”

Before he knew it he had typed his number into Changgu’s phone and the other boy smiled sweetly. “Thank you. See you on friday then, Jinho.”

“Yeah, see you!”

After Changgu had left the room Jinho sighed deeply. My god, I’m giving him private classes.

-  
On that friday Jinho regretted all his life choices. He’d woken up with his hair a hopeless mess and he wanted to vanish inside his way too oversized sweater which covered both of his hands. 

Well, it was one of Shinwon’s hand-me-downs. Both Shinwon and Yanan had made it a habit that during their immense growing phase in puberty to give their clothes to Jinho when they were too small.

And Jinho couldn’t really complain, the clothes were comfortable and he loved the feeling of sinking into them whenever he wore them. 

Still, on this particular friday nothing seemed to go right, classes had gone terribly since he was so incredibly unmotivated.

And now he was standing in front of the drama practice room, checking the time on his phone display way too often.

At exactly five he heard steps and Jinho’s head snapped up to see Yeo Changgu come around the corner, a smile on his face.

“Hey Jinho!” he said, his voice a lot more cheerful than expected. “Want a hug? You look like you need one.”

Jinho’s face felt way too warm as he slowly muttered “Hey… yeah, hugs are nice.”

Changgu chuckled, opening his arms widely and wrapping them around Jinho who suddenly realised how much shorter than Changgu he was.

Of course, it was nothing compared to his two best friends but still enough to make him feel small yet secure with his face halfway hidden in Changgu’s shoulder.

The other boy wasn’t explicitly warm but he smelled of a specific cologne and Jinho was afraid he might grow used to it.

So he hugged back and let the comfort sink in.

They let go again and Changgu smiled once more and suddenly Jinho felt a lot less terrible.

“Jinho… before we start I think I have to admit something.” the taller of them then said and Jinho raised his brows.

“What is it?”

“I… well, I’ve never seen the movie before.”

Jinho opened his mouth, ready to say something but suddenly what he wanted to say seemed too unfitting.

“We can- I mean… if you want to and have time… we can watch it… today, together… it’s, I mean it’s important you get to know your character a bit.”

Changgu pressed his lips together, nodding softly.

“That’d be nice.” he said.

“Well I… I mean, are you comfortable coming to my place? I don’t live that far from here.”

“Of course! That’s fine.” Changgu responded, smiling gently.

So Jinho left the practice room locked and instead led the other outside and to the bus station where they sat and waited for a few minutes.

“How come I’ve never seen you around school?” Jinho asked suddenly. The other boy hummed.

“Well, I only started going to this one this year because I didn’t feel as comfortable on my old one… and since my friends were here already I decided on this school.”

“If I may ask… who are your friends? You mentioned Wooseok, I think I know him. What about the rest?”

“Well, yes, there’s Wooseok, the giant toddler and his boyfriend Hongseok who’s… he’s seen me at my worst. And the third one is Yuto. He’s a bit shy at times but we’ve had a lot of time to bond recently since the Seoks only got together three months ago and if they weren’t attached by the hip before they definitely are now.”

Jinho had noticed that Changgu had a consistent smile, he never really stopped smiling, it was a subconscious thing to him, he began smiling at the most random times and Jinho didn’t notice it had faded until it came back. He thought it was endearing.

“I think I’ve seen them all around before. They seem nice!”

“They are.” Changgu smiled. “How about you? You and your two tall friends, how did you meet them?”

“Oh, well, I’ve known them since middle school. We didn’t really talk, neither to each other nor to the other kids but at some point we were assigned a group project together and… well, it just happened. But I can’t complain, they’re amazing, the best friends I’ve ever had.” Jinho explained.

It remained silent for a bit after that. Soon their bus was in sight. However, before it arrived Changgu cleared his throat.

“Jinho, I’d like if we… were friends too.”

The shorter boy turned to face him with wide eyes, suddenly unable to contain a smile.

“Of course! I’d like that too.”

With that they got into the bus. The ride was a short one, two stops and the two of them got out again.

“I envy your way to school.” Changgu commented, laughing immediately afterwards while they approached the apartment building Jinho called his home.

The two of them entered and Jinho realised that his parents were not there. Oh god, we’re alone he thought to himself.

“I uh… you can leave your things… there.” he gestured towards a part of the hallway. He then rushed into the kitchen.

“We- we don’t have any snacks or anything I am so sorry… do you want something to drink? We have… water, cola, sprite, orange juice… yeah.”

“It’s fine!” Changgu now stood in the doorframe. “I’ll just have a sprite.”

Jinho nodded, more to himself than to the other boy and got sprite for both of them, then he led Changgu to the living room.

“Uh make… make yourself a home, I’ll put in the DVD.”

Changgu sat on the couch and after Jinho had started the movie he joined him there, leaving a polite distance between them.

Jinho tried very hard to keep quiet but at one point throughout the movie he couldn’t stop himself and began singing along loudly, as he always did while watching this movie.

Changgu didn’t say anything, he just kept watching and before they knew it the movie was over.

“Wow.” Changgu said eventually, looking over at the other boy. “That was incredible.”

“Right?” Jinho caught himself sounding overly excited again and mentally slapped himself for it.

“And you… Jinho, wow, you can sing! You’re so good.” Changgu’s voice was full of admiration and he looked so deeply into Jinho’s eyes that latter felt dizzy.

“That’s… that’s exaggerated.” he muttered. Changgu shook his head.

“You’re seriously amazing.” his voice was calm and sincere and Jinho felt a warm feeling spread from his chest into his entire body.

“Thank you.” he replied quietly.

“No, thank you. For making time for me and watching this with me and letting me join your play I… I don’t think I normally would have auditioned.”

“Then why did you?”

“My friends dared me… but I’m glad they did, I’m thankful for this opportunity and I’m thankful that… well, I got a new friend out of it so that’s a bonus.”

Jinho smiled first this time and Changgu smiled back at him.

It was a weird coincidence he thought, a weird coincidence that Yeo Changgu was here on his couch right now and it was a weird coincidence that he had soft brown locks that made Jinho want to let his hand go through them and it was a weird coincidence that everything seemed to be exactly how it always had been destined to.

-  
Shinwon offered a fry to Yanan who opened his mouth and let his friend feed him. Jinho took a sip of his soda, pulling a grimace at the tremendous amount of carbonic acid.

“So that’s why you’ve been ditching my invites.” Shinwon noted, looking at Jinho intently, nodding slowly as if things were starting to make sense to him.

“I haven't been ditching them! I told you we can meet on saturdays or sundays but you always claim you’re busy then.” Jinho responded, trying not to laugh at the guilt on his friend's face.

Yanan snorted. “Busy? The only thing he's doing on weekends nowadays is meeting up with Hwitaek or video calling him.”

“Traitor!” Shinwon shrieked, throwing a single fry at Yanan who just ate his burger silently.

“Why didn’t you tell me? That’s so great! Everyone and their mom knows you like Hwitaek. This is good progress!” Jinho said, smiling widely at Shinwon who now blushed lightly.

“We… I don't know, I mean… he's amazing he's the sweetest I just… don't know if he likes me. I think the signs are there but maybe that's just what I want to see.” he said, voice low and shy, something that rarely ever happened.

“Buddy, I don't know how to tell you this but you have to kiss the boy anyways, I don't know if you want your first kiss with your crush to be a staged one.” Yanan commented. Shinwon howled, hiding his face in his hands. His ears were red by now.

“He’s totally imagining kissing Hwitaek.” Yanan added and Jinho laughed.

“Won, everything will be fine! He likes you back, I’m sure of that.”

Shinwon looked at his friends, smiling softly.

“Thanks Ji… I… I have to tell him, don't I?”

“You should.” Yanan said and Shinwon nodded.

“But back to Ji and his new prince in shining armour.” the tallest of them continued. “What do you even do when you meet up?”

Jinho felt warm. He cleared his throat.

“Well we… I kind of help him get to know his character? You know… he didn’t know the movie so the first time we met we watched it and now we work on… I don’t know, him getting familiar with Carlyle? And I mean he’s a brilliant actor already, a true natural but we work on some techniques and details nevertheless. And then…” Jinho, lost in thought and maybe a bit shy turned quiet. Shinwon scooted closer to him.

“And then what?”

“He… he brings me home every time… he says it's on his way so…”

Yanan and Shinwon looked at each other shortly before breaking into laughter.

“That's not funny!” Jinho complained, what made them laugh even more.

“Ji, he brings you home! Does he give you hugs too?”

“Y-yeah? Just for saying Hi and Bye though… that's what friends do.”

Yanan nodded, grinning widely. “What friends do, absolutely. Whatever makes you sleep at night, Ji.”

Jinho frowned.

“You two are annoying.” he muttered.

“But you love us.” Shinwon replied, taking a sip from Jinho’s drink and pinching his friend’s cheek afterwards.

“Yeah I do, whatever…”

“Ji, we’re proud of you, you know? Everyone knows the choreographies and songs by now. I think we can start focusing on the rest of the play soon.” Yanan started. Jinho hummed.

Over the course of the past five months time had practically been flying. The weekly meetings with both the whole cast as well as with Changgu had become a routine and the cast members all knew what they had to do and when they had to do it. They all were ambitious and hardworking so everything had worked out quickly.

Changgu also was incredibly dedicated. Everytime he met Jinho, no matter if it was on friday afternoons or at lunch, he told him about a new idea he had for the play, his character and other things. Jinho thought he was brilliant.

Changgu also liked to text Jinho. In the mornings and evenings, small motivational messages or random thoughts or even things like I liked the glasses you wore today.

Jinho would be lying if he said he didn’t enjoy it.

“You’re right… everyone’s been doing so well. But… I don’t think I could have done this without you both.” Jinho said. His friends smiled widely.

“Ah, we’re just keeping you on track and making sure everyone understands the things your genius brain produces.” Shinwon responded. Jinho shook his head.

“I’m no genius. But I’m still proud of this play. Thank you guys… I love you, really.”

“We love you too, Ji. Everything will turn out to be amazing, I’m sure.” Yanan said. And deep down Jinho knew he was right.

-  
Jinho poked his fork into the mush that had been labelled as mashed potatoes but didn’t exactly look as appetizing as it should have.

There was an undefinable piece of meat on the plate as well and Jinho frowned at how bad it all looked. I should have went out for lunch with Shinwon and Hwitaek…

He shoved the fork into his mouth, swallowing down the tasteless food without pulling a face, washing the aftertaste down with a gulp of water.

“Hey Jinho? Is this spot still free?”

Jinho looked up, dropping the fork when he saw Yeo Changgu standing there, pointing at the chair across from Jinho’s.

I will not panic this time, I can be calm with Changgu, we’re friends.

“Of course! Yeah, take a seat.”

Changgu smiled widely like he always did, eyes creasing and cheeks round. He set down his tray on the table and sat down, looking at the other boy intently. He tilted his head.

“You don’t look very happy today, is everything okay?” he asked carefully. Jinho only noticed the hand on his wrist after a few moments of silence. Changgu’s skin was cold but soft and his fingers were long so they fitted around Jinho’s wrist terrifyingly well.

“Just tired… and this food is terrible.” Jinho replied. The other boy laughed full-heartedly. His fingertips now were stroking over the shorter boy’s skin with such gentleness and in such a subtle manner that it sent shivers over Jinho’s spine.

“You should go to sleep early today then.”

Jinho frowned.

“But it’s friday! I thought… I mean, I thought we could hang out for a bit longer than usual today… since your birthday is friday next week.” his voice had become lower.

“I don’t see why that speaks against you sleeping early?”

“No… no, I meant it like… I thought… maybe you’d like to stay over at my place tonight.” Jinho muttered, suddenly feeling very small.

However, Changgu smiled again, widely.

“That sounds great!” he said. “That way I can also make sure you sleep enough.”

Jinho smiled back at him, Changgu’s hand was loosely holding onto his own now. He felt the curly headed boy let his thumb caress Jinho’s hand.

Suddenly he let go, starting to eat his food instead and Jinho found himself yearning for another touch.

Changgu swallowed the first bite of his meat and furrowed his brows.

“This tastes weird.”

“Right? I know why I usually don’t eat here.”

Changgu shrugged, cutting off a piece of Jinho’s meat and holding it in front of his friend’s mouth.

“You still gotta eat, you have to grow a bit.” Changgu giggled. The other boy frowned at him.

“I’m not that short!” he whined and Changgu laughed, covering his mouth with his hand. Jinho pulled it away and the other boy tilted his head, eyes wide but still shining.

“You have a pretty smile. Don’t hide it.” Jinho said.

“You’re cute.” Changgu responded and Jinho caught himself still holding onto the other’s hand. His face heated up as he let go.

“We should eat up, class is beginning soon.”

Jinho nodded and so they ate in silence. The food suddenly seemed to be less terrible than before and as they finished and got up together Changgu claimed he’d still walk Jinho to his next classroom.

When they did arrive there Changgu pulled the other boy into a hug.

“I’ll see you tonight then. Can’t wait for our sleepover.”

Jinho nodded, smiling.

“Me too. See you later.”

-  
Changgu placed his backpack in a corner of Jinho’s room, looking around.

“This is a nice room.” Changgu started. He looked around for a bit and Jinho felt weirdly exposed. Not in a bad way though. “Is that a piano?”

“Yeah.”

“Do you play?”

“Sometimes… it’s gotten a bit rusty.”

“Can you play for me? I only know how to play the guitar.” Changgu said then. Jinho looked at  
him.

“I mean I can try…”

Jinho sat in front of the piano and gently touched the keys, trying to remember a song, any one of them.

He did. A rather simple melody but enough for him to feel good while playing it.

He got a bit lost in it, he always did, maybe that was why he played so rarely, because he didn’t like losing track of time and the world around him.

When he finished he closed his eyes and Changgu clapped.

“Jinho that was amazing! Is there anything you can’t do perfectly?”

Jinho smiled. He tended to do that a lot when he was with Changgu.

“It’s… I used to be better.” Jinho said, scratching the back of his head.

He heard Changgu get up from the bed and walk over, sitting down on the piano stool next to the other.

“I think it's great. Can you teach me something? I know which key is which tone. I guess music class is useful sometimes.”

They both laughed shortly and Jinho pondered for a while.

“Do you know Hallelujah? The song, I mean?” he asked eventually.

Changgu nodded. “Who doesn’t?”

Jinho looked for the sheets and found them quickly on a pile on his desk. He placed them in front of Changgu.

“The chords are written on top. Can you play the main note for each chord? So only one key at a time. I can do the rest.”

Changgu scanned the sheet and then the piano, after that he nodded. “Yeah, I think I can.”

And so they played. It worked and Changgu began singing along at one point. Jinho thought that this had to be what heaven sounded like, if heaven was real, something he never had been sure about.

It felt different this time, hearing Changgu’s voice. He wasn’t singing for the audition, he wasn’t singing for the play. He was singing for Jinho and no one else could hear.

Jinho’s heart was racing.

When they finished Changgu started giggling, looking at his friend.

“That was cool.” he said.

Jinho smiled.

“You’re cool.”

Changgu looked at him for a while, eyes scanning Jinho’s face. Scanning for what? Neither of them said anything.

“I’m going to get changed already.” Changgu declared. Jinho nodded.

Then he was out of the room.

And suddenly he was back again.

A bit later, after Jinho had also changed into a pair of sweatpants and a loose t-shirt he cleared his throat.

“Are you hungry? I mean because… well, my parents aren’t home and I’m a bad cook so all I have to offer is cup ramen.”

Changgu grinned.

“Cup ramen sounds perfectly fine to me. Lead the way, big boy.”

Big boy, he’d started calling Jinho that after christmas break, the short boy never questioned it. He actually kind of liked it. It was a nickname, it was a nickname for him and only Changgu used it.

Jinho took Changgu to the kitchen and boiled the water while the other boy sat on a chair, looking at the kitchen walls.

“You were a cute baby.” he stated. Jinho felt flustered.

“I suppose so. All babies are cute though.”

Changgu shrugged. “Maybe that’s true but you were a very cute one.”

Jinho smiled.

They ate in silence. Changgu hummed while eating, that was also something he just did. He always hummed when he ate. It was a Changgu thing and Jinho had learned to adore such Changgu things.

When they were finished they returned into Jinho’s room and sat on the bed.

“We could watch a movie.” Jinho suggested.

“Sure! Which one?”

Jinho hummed. “I don’t really care, you can choose one.”

They decided on a stereotypical teenage rom com, because apparently Changgu liked movies like that. And Jinho… well, Jinho liked Changgu.

When they were not even twenty minutes into the movie Changgu suddenly rested his head on Jinho’s shoulder. It was a simple gesture but somehow the atmosphere was so very different than it would be if it was Yanan or Shinwon.

“Is it weird if I do this?” Changgu whispered. Jinho smiled subconsciously.

“No, it’s nice.” he responded.

About a minute later, or maybe two, Changgu cleared his throat.

“Can I hold your hand?”

Jinho didn’t say anything, he just lifted his hand, palm up, allowing Changgu to take it and lace their fingers gently.

They didn’t say anything, they didn’t have to.

Changgu had cold hands. Or maybe Jinho’s hand was just unusually warm. “You are like an oven.” Shinwon had said once. Jinho always had warm hands, in winter as well as in summer.

Holding Changgu’s hand was different. Their hands seemed to fit into each other way too well for it to be coincidental. Changgu had soft skin. Changgu sometimes squeezed Jinho’s hand slightly. Changgu was so close to Jinho. Changgu.

The movie went on and ended and as the end credits were rolling Changgu loosened from Jinho. Maybe latter was a bit sad about that, maybe.

“You think rom coms are stupid, right?” Changgu asked him. Jinho caught his gaze.

“Maybe a bit. I mostly think they’re boring.”

“I think they’re nice. I like that there’s no huge drama or sadness. No violence. They’re nice.”

“Do you think they’re realistic?”

“Of course they are! Don’t you believe that you can fall in love when you’re young? I think I’d go insane if I stopped believing in love. I want to fall in love one day. I don’t want a tragic heartbreak story.”

“That’s a good thing to want.”

“What do you want, Jinho?”

I kind of want to kiss you, Jinho thought, erasing the thought immediately after.

“I think I’m happy with the way things are right now.”

Changgu smiled.

“That’s good too.” he said. “I admire you, Jinho.”

Jinho’s face was heating up.

“What’s there to admire?”

But Changgu ignored his question. “You’re blushing.” he whispered, smiling softly. God, how Jinho loved that smile.

-  
On the friday that following week, Changgu’s birthday, Jinho ran into his friend at lunch and hugged him tightly.

“Happy birthday, Changgu.” he said softly. The other boy held him close and hummed.

“Thank you. I was worried I wouldn’t see you at all today.” Changgu responded and Jinho loosened the hug so he could look into his eyes.

“I was looking for you the whole day!” Jinho told him and Changgu smiled.

“Jinho... me and my friends are going out for pizza tonight. Do you want to join? I’d really like to have you there.”

Jinho smiled. “Sure! That sounds great.” He ignored his rapid heartbeat.

They met at the pizza place at seven in the evening, Jinho was apparently not the last to join.

Besides Changgu and him there were two boys already there, which Changgu introduced as “The two Seoks”. They were a couple, as Jinho found out, and if he’d thought Hyunggu and Yanan were clingy, these two beat them by far.

The taller of them, Wooseok, seemed very excited to meet Jinho.

“I love your plays. You’re a genius, really.” he claimed. Jinho laughed.

“Ah, it’s not all that, most of it depends on how motivated the cast is… and lucky for me they usually have a lot of fun.” Jinho explained. “But I heard you talked Changgu into auditioning?”

Changgu turned red. “It wasn’t like that! I did want to audition.”

“I told him I’d post the song he wrote on social media if he didn’t audition.” Hongseok said.

Jinho looked at Changgu who was frowning. “You write songs?”

“I mean… sometimes.” Changgu admitted.

“Can I hear?”

“Maybe… maybe soon.”

They went into the restaurant then and sat down at a table, Changgu at the head of it, Jinho next to him.

“Why is Yu always late?” Hongseok complained. His boyfriend laughed.

“Why are you always so whiny? That’s just Yuto.”

That moment another boy joined them at their table, hugging Changgu shortly and taking the seat across from Jinho’s.

“Hey, sorry I’m late. Happy birthday, Ggu.” he said. His voice was deep, even deeper than Wooseok’s. Jinho was fascinated.

Changgu took the chance to introduce Jinho and Yuto, they then ordered their foods.

Yuto was a quiet guy, rarely saying something and if he did it was always short. He still had a bright smile and listened attentively.

“I feel like I’ve seen you before. Do I know you somehow, Yuto?” Jinho asked while the two Seoks were arguing about something they both knew was irrelevant and the smiles on their face as well as the gentle touches showed that neither of them were really mad.

Yuto looked at him.

“I work at the café down the street from our school.”

“Right! I remember seeing you there. My friend Yanan loves that place.”

“You always order an iced latte, right?” Yuto asked. Jinho laughed, nodding.

“I don't really like warm coffee.” he explained. Yuto laughed too.

They continued talking, even as their food arrived and somehow Jinho found himself clicking extremely well with Yuto.

“You have a super cool voice. Have you ever tried singing?” Jinho asked at one point. Wooseok next to him chuckled.

“He hates singing. He thinks he sounds like a dying goose.”

“Yu’s singing voice actually isn’t that bad.” Hongseok continued. Yuto turned red.

“I don't think there’s people who can’t sing. Everyone can, some just need a little training.” Jinho said.

He felt someone poke his arm. He turned to see Changgu pushing his bottom lip forward. He looked like a sulking toddler. Jinho couldn’t help but smile.

“What’s up?”

“Can I have a bite of your pizza? I wanna see what it tastes like.” Changgu said, voice low so that only Jinho could hear. The other three boys were still talking.

“Sure!”

However Changgu made no effort to take a slice. He smiled.

“It’s my birthday. Give me.” he pointed at his slightly opened mouth and Jinho laughed, trying to conceal how flustered he felt.

He took a slice of his pizza and slowly held it in front of Changgu’s face.

The birthday boy took a bite and smiled, seemingly satisfied.

When he’d swallowed the food down he looked into Jinho’s eyes deeply.

“Thank you, big boy. It’s good.”

Jinho nodded, looking down at his plate and continuing to eat.

That evening Jinho learned that Changgu’s friends were all incredibly different, maybe that was what made them so interesting, maybe that was why they clicked so well.

At some point, long after their plates had been emptied, when everyone was just talking, Changgu’s pinky finger linked with Jinho’s. It was subtle, on top of the table but so gentle that no one noticed.

Jinho loved it.

Later that evening he was in his room, getting changed when his phone display lit up. Changgu had texted him.

-Hey Jinho  
-I hope you’re still awake

-Hey, what’s up?  
-Are you alright?

-Yeah, don’t worry  
-Did you get home safely?

-Yes!!  
-I had fun tonight!

-I know, I could tell.

-Huh? Is everything okay?  
-Are you upset about something?

-No, no, I’m fine.  
-You really liked Yuto, hm?

-I mean, yeah? He’s cool.

-You two seemed to have clicked well.

-Changgu…?  
-Are you  
-...jealous?

-What? No! Of course not.  
-Why’d I be jealous?

-You are. Why?

-Yu’s really cool, huh

-He is.  
-But you know what?  
-I think you’re a lot cooler.  
-And I like you a lot more than him.  
-I really like you.   
-So no reason to be jealous.

-I really like you too :]  
-I’m glad you were there.  
-Today was a good birthday!

-I’m glad <3  
-Goodnight, Changgu.

-Goodnight <3

Jinho put his phone aside and smiled to himself, eyes closed.

-  
On a friday evening in may, shortly before Changgu’s and Jinho’s usual practice time would be over, the former cleared his throat.

“Jinho?”

“Yeah?”

“I uhm… how do stage kisses work?”

“What?” Jinho felt his heart pounding and he stared at Changgu who tried to avoid his gaze.

“Well… Hana, you know, she said she doesn’t want us to kiss for real because she has a crush on this dude.”

Hana was the girl who played Anne Wheeler. An incredibly talented and bright girl.

Jinho tried to collect and sort his thoughts.

“I mean I… I guess?”

“Can you show me?” Changgu asked, his voice was low but he was looking at Jinho now.

Oh my god, Jinho tried to say something but he seemed to have forgotten how to speak.

Changgu’s look was pleading and Jinho damned him for being so hard to say no to.

“Well you… you have to put your thumbs on the spot you’re gonna kiss and… and kiss your thumbs… that’s all I know.” he stuttered. Changgu bit his bottom lip and nodded slowly.

“Can you show me, please Jinho? I want to know if it feels weird. And I have to show her next time so…”

Changgu was nervous, clearly, but not nearly as nervous as Jinho. Jinho, who now had to pretend-kiss the guy he liked.

Did he like Changgu? That was what his friends kept telling him.

To be fair, he had noticed a difference on his inner state when he was with Changgu compared to when he was with his other friends.

Changgu was just different. It wasn’t anything specific, it was just that Jinho didn’t mind looking into his eyes and listening to him talk for hours on end without ever growing tired. 

It was just that he by now had noticed and memorised Changgu’s small habits. Like how he’d purse his lips randomly sometimes or how he always twisted a specific curl around his fingers when he was focusing on something.

It was just that they’d made it a natural, almost unconscious thing to hold hands or lean against each other. Being close to Changgu was as necessary and easy as breathing.

And now Changgu was standing in front of him, looking at him.

Jinho carefully cupped the taller boy’s face, placing his thumbs on Changgu’s lips. Oh my god, he has smooth lips.

Changgu still looked into his eyes and Jinho returned the gesture, asking for permission.

“Okay I’ll… are you gonna keep your eyes open? That’s a bit weird.”

Changgu's eyelids fluttered shut and Jinho could barely hear anything other than his rapid heartbeat at that point.

He leaned forward and was almost surprised when his lips only were met with his thumbs. He kissed his own skin shortly and moved back again, taking his hands off Changgu’s face.

Changgu opened his eyes.

“That okay?” Jinho’s voice was a mere whisper for some reason. The other boy nodded.

“Can I try it on you too?”

Jinho blushed insanely hard. Or at least he thought he did. He wasn’t so sure because his body seemed to have frozen on the spot.

“Y-yeah.” he responded. Changgu smiled at him.

His hands were on Jinho’s jaw now, his cold but soft hands. And his thumbs were on Jinho’s mouth.

“Why are you always so warm?” Changgu whispered.

Jinho didn’t say anything. He closed his eyes instead.

He could feel Changgu’s breath hitting his face and he heard the noise, the stereotypical kiss noise as Changgu copied what Jinho had done a few minutes prior.

Jinho knew Changgu had moved away slightly but his hands still were on the shorter boy’s face. And suddenly he was caressing Jinho’s cheeks, then his hair.

“Thank you, I think I know how it works now.” Changgu’s voice was low. Jinho’s eyes still were closed. “You’re pretty.” the taller boy added. “You’re really, really pretty, Jinho.”

“You too.” Jinho whispered back, finally opening his eyes to look at the other boy who was smiling at him now.

“Let’s go, it’s getting late. I’ll bring you home.” Changgu said. Jinho just nodded.

The sky was clear that evening so they decided to walk instead of taking the bus.

Changgu’s cold hand was holding onto Jinho’s. It was nice. Jinho liked Changgu, he truly did.

-  
A month before their performance they started doing the first full test runs at their wednesday cast meetings. Everything was going well, small issues were easily fixed and everyone had learned their lines.

Jinho couldn’t stop smiling, his heart swelling with pride.

Well, until they got to that one scene.

The hospital scene. Jinho held his breath, standing in front of the stage and watching from the spectators’ view.

Changgu was lying in the bed, eyes closed while Hana sang with a shaky voice.

Hana was an amazing actress, the way she fully immersed herself in character was extraordinary and Jinho had told her that before. 

“I wanna be an actress later.” she had said back then.

Then it happened. Changgu opened his eyes.

And she kissed him. No, wait, she didn’t kiss him. Jinho knew that. But it looked scarily real and his heart was stinging. He clapped once as soon as Hana let go of Changgu.

“Thanks guys. That was amazing, Hana.”

She smiled at Jinho. “Thank you.” Jinho was furious for some reason.

He didn’t look at Changgu until they’d finished practice and Jinho sent everyone home. Then Changgu was suddenly there, in front of him.

“Weird... “ he said, pulling Jinho into a hug. “You’re a lot better at stage kisses than her. Yours seem real.” Changgu whispered, then he left without another word.

Jinho wanted to cry.

“Ji?”

Shinwon and Hwitaek were still there. Shinwon and Hwitaek, Hwitaek and Shinwon, they only came as a package deal now. They’d started dating pretty early into their play rehearsals, around christmas time, around Shinwon’s birthday. And all their kisses on stage were as real as the off stage ones.

Shinwon was behind Jinho now, hugging him tightly.

“You’ve always been terrible at hiding your emotions.” he said softly and Jinho leaned into the touch.

“How can I hide them when I don’t even recognise them?”

“To me it looks like you’re jealous because Hana gets to kiss Changgu and you don’t.” Hwitaek said, now standing in front of Jinho, arms crossed but a kind smile on his face. He had a calming effect on others.

“She didn’t kiss him. I showed them… I mean… I showed Changgu how to fake a kiss on stage.” Jinho responded. Hwitaek looked at Shinwon, then back at Jinho.

“But you’re still jealous?”

“I’m not! I mean… I don’t know, maybe I am. I just… I like Changgu a lot.”

“You should tell him.” Shinwon said. Jinho shook his head.

“I can’t. Not so shortly before the performances. I have to… I… I have to focus on this play.” Jinho muttered. Hwitaek smiled at him, placing his hands on Jinho’s arms.

“Hey, Jinho, this play is gonna be great. You hear me? Everyone worked so hard on it.”

“You’re the stars of this one. You two are amazing, you know?” Jinho responded and Hwitaek hugged him and Shinwon, leaving the shortest one squished in the middle.

When they let go again Shinwon left a peck on Jinho’s cheek as well as a sweet kiss on his boyfriend’s lips.

“How about we go get some burgers?” Shinwon suggested. Jinho and Hwitaek laughed.

“You only say that because you’re craving burgers.” Hwitaek said and Shinwon frowned.

“No! I want to spend time with you two as well.”

Hwitaek grinned and kissed him again.

Jinho thought they were sweet. It came easy to them, feelings, attraction, love. They never overdid it but they did it often enough for them both to blush regularly at the affection they received.

Maybe Jinho envied them a bit. Of course he was happy that they’d found such happiness in each other but he still envied them for he sometimes wished he had the courage to tell Changgu that this was exactly what he wanted with him.

When they headed to the burger place Jinho was in the middle, his two friends having their arms linked with his own.

At some moment later when Shinwon was at the restroom Hwitaek looked at Jinho and smiled.

“I saw how Changgu hugged you earlier. Did he say something to you?”

“He said my fake kiss felt more real than Hana’s.” Jinho admitted. Hwitaek nodded.

“Are you meeting him again on friday?”

“Yeah… he said we could do it at his place this time. He wants to show me his guitar… and some of his songs.” 

“You gotta tell him Jinho, you really have to.” Hwitaek’s expression was serious now. Serious, but never cold.

“I… I have to think about it.”

-  
After their last classes Changgu picked Jinho up from the school entrance and they made their way to his house. They had to go a few stations further by bus and then they walked for another ten minutes.

“I wonder how we’ve never been on the same bus before we met.” Changgu thought out loud, hand laced with Jinho’s.

“Sometimes life is a strange coincidence.” Jinho responded. Changgu shifted a bit closer to him.

“I’m glad I met you, Jinho.”

“I’m glad I met you too.”

Changgu squeezed Jinho’s hand before pointing at the house they were approaching. “That’s where I live.” he said.

It was a simple apartment building but Changgu looked at it with such familiarity and happiness that it felt special to Jinho as well.

They got inside the apartment and were immediately greeted by a lively woman, the type Jinho’s mother would love to be friends with.

“Hey boys! I’m sorry, I’m in a rush, I’m meeting a friend. I left you food on the stove. Ah, I’m Changgu’s mother, by the way. You must be Jinho. He’s talked about you practically nonstop over the past months.” she had turned to Jinho and smiled at him. The boy just smiled back, nodding.

She ruffled her son’s hair before hurrying outside. Changgu groaned.

“I’m sorry, she’s like that sometimes.”

“It’s fine. She reminds me of my mom.” Jinho said, chuckling. He took off his jacket and shoes, then he followed his friend into his room.

“It’s a bit messy, I didn’t have time to clean up, sorry.” Changgu scratched the back of his head. Jinho smiled.

Changgu had a small, cozy room with a small bed, a small closet, a small desk, small shelves but still everything seemed to fill the space perfectly.

The one thing that caught Jinho’s eye were the walls. They were painted to look like the night sky, in dark blue with stars and galaxies and the constellations. It was mesmerising.

Jinho breathed out a “Wow.” and turned around to take it in properly.

“You like it?”

“That’s insane. This is insane, it’s beautiful.” Jinho said.

“My cousin painted it over the christmas break as my present.”

“Your cousin is insanely talented.” Jinho said, now looking at Changgu.

Changgu looked at the walls, smiling softly. “Yeah, she is.”

He was stunning in this light, he seemed to have a light glowing around him and Jinho couldn’t stop staring at him.

Not that Changgu wasn’t always beautiful, just at that moment it was extraordinary and Jinho’s heart swelled with adoration.

“What?” Changgu whispered when he noticed Jinho’s gaze. A blush creeped up his cheeks.

“You’re just beautiful, that’s all.” Jinho responded, voice low and Changgu smiled, looking down shyly.

“You wanted to hear my songs, right?” he said quietly. Jinho sat down on his bed and nodded.

Changgu cleared his throat and grabbed the guitar that Jinho had failed to see so far since he’d been too immersed in the beauty of the walls… and Changgu, probably Changgu more than the walls.

The curly headed boy sat down as well, looking at Jinho and smiling.

“I wrote this one after your birthday when we went to the arcade with your friends… it’s slow though, they’re all slow. I don’t really write fast songs.”

“Slow is perfect.” Jinho replied.

Changgu began singing and Jinho felt his heart racing. It was magical, the way Changgu’s voice managed to reach every part of Jinho’s mind.

The lyrics were sweet, sweet like Changgu. And Jinho felt things he only felt when they held hands or when Changgu looked into his eyes for too long.

He didn’t want it to stop.

Changgu played the last chord and giggled as the other boy started applauding.

“That was fantastic, Changgu.”

“Thank you.” he answered, smiling widely. “We’d make a great duo, don’t you think?”

“Absolutely.”

Changgu played another song and a third and after that Jinho stopped counting and just got lost in the other’s warm voice. At some point he lay down on the bed, closing his eyes as he simply listened.

Then Changgu put his guitar away and lay next to Jinho, his hand finding the other’s almost immediately.

“Changgu?”

“Hm?”

“I’m a bit scared.”

“Of what?”

Changgu’s fingers tightened around Jinho’s, giving him safety, giving him something to hold onto, as he always did.

“What if people don’t like the play? What if something goes wrong?”

Changgu chuckled, shifting a bit so that his head was directly next to Jinho’s.

“So what? We all worked hard on this and I’m proud of you, of us, all of us, no matter what.”

“It had some good things, right? Deciding to do this.”

“You mean Shinwon and Hwitaek?”

“Hmm… yeah, them… but also us.”

“Us? We’re an us?”

Jinho didn’t respond. He just looked up at the painted stars on the ceiling and imagined themselves stargazing for real, outside of the polluted air of the city, just them and the stars.

It was silent for a while until Changgu sat up.

“Are you hungry? We can eat something.”

Jinho just nodded and so they went to eat.

Changgu’s mother had made a noodle soup for them and so the two of them sat down at the table, eating.

“Your mom’s a good cook.” Jinho said. Changgu laughed.

“She says she’s average but she also says that as long as we don’t have to starve we should be thankful.”

“No seriously, this is good. You can tell her I said that.”

“I will.” Changgu said. His voice was calm.

When they were finished Jinho finally checked the time.

“Oh… it’s getting late. I promised my dad I’d help him with something tonight. I think I have to go…” he muttered. Changgu frowned.

“I’ll bring you home.” he said determinedly. Jinho laughed.

“Are you nuts? I’m a big boy, I think I can get home alone.”

“At least let me bring you to the bus stop.”

Jinho nodded, smiling at the other. 

They then made their way to the bus station and Changgu insisted on waiting for the bus with Jinho.

When the bus was in sight Changgu pulled the other into a tight hug.

“See you on monday.” he whispered. “Get home safely, be careful, okay?”

“Okay.” Jinho smiled.

Changgu let go and waved once more as Jinho got into the bus. He watched him until the bus was around a corner.

Maybe he likes me back. Oh my god, maybe he likes me back!

-  
On a thursday in june they had their final rehearsal, since their performances would be on friday and saturday.

Jinho was nervous to say the least. The rehearsal had a few small problems but as he’d learned that usually meant the actual show would be good.

Still, he felt dizzy as they performed the final scene. 

The cast members were incredibly good at this and still Jinho was terrified of messing something up or not appealing to the audience.

After they’d finished he gathered everyone in a circle.

“Okay guys, it’s time. We all prepared so hard and I know we can do this. Now go home and get some good sleep so you are rested and energised tomorrow. Thank you for doing this with me, the past ten months were incredibly fun and you’re all fantastic.” he said.

The students clapped and cheered loudly before one by one leaving the room as Jinho leaned against a wall, nauseous.

“Ji, hey, this is gonna be great.” Yanan said, placing a hand on his friend’s shoulder. Jinho just nodded. 

“Maybe this is just me but I have a gut feeling that this premiere is gonna be a special one.” Shinwon added and Jinho looked at him, smiling.

“Because you get to kiss Hwitaek in front of your parents?” he asked jokingly. Shinwon grinned.

“That too but… something tells me it’s going to be special for you too.”

“I hope in a good way.” Jinho muttered. Yanan ruffled his hair.

“I’m sure it’s gonna be special in the best way.”

Before any of them could say anything else Changgu was standing in front of them. Yanan cleared his throat.

“Won, I was gonna show you something. Can you come along?”

Shinwon nodded and so they left, only Changgu and Jinho remaining.

“You’d think as actors they could pretend a bit better that they’re not leaving because they want to give us a chance to talk alone.” the curly headed boy said. Jinho didn’t even think before combing through Changgu’s hair.

“You look messy today.” he said, smiling. Changgu chuckled.

“I’ll make myself prettier for the performances, okay?”

Jinho shook his head. “You already are pretty.” he stated, voice low and weak.

“You sound sad. What’s wrong?” Changgu asked after a few moments of silence. Jinho looked into his eyes to find the warmth that he always found within the other boy.

“The play is tomorrow and I can’t seem to focus. I can’t sleep either.”

“Is something on your mind? Tell me, maybe we can fix it.” Changgu said softly, smiling. Jinho shook his head.

“I don’t think that it’s something that can or should be fixed. It’s fine, don’t worry.”

Changgu stepped closer, grabbing Jinho by the shoulders.

He then pulled Jinho closer gently so he could leave a kiss on the shorter boy’s forehead.

It didn’t stop there. After a second kiss he left his lips resting against Jinho’s skin. Latter’s heart was racing.

“Whatever it is, you’ll figure it out, okay? And I’m here with you. I promise.” Changgu spoke against Jinho’s face and Jinho could feel how warm Changgu’s lips were compared to his hands.

Jinho wrapped his arms around Changgu’s waist and Changgu returned the hug, still leaving his lips on the same spot.

“Thank you, Changgu.” Jinho said quietly.

“Can I bring you home?”

“Sure. But… I wasn’t gonna take the bus, the weather’s nice and it’s only a fifteen minute walk.”

“That’s fine, we can walk.” Changgu answered, smiling as they let go of the hug and laced their hands instead.

When they went outside the sky was slowly turning yellow, sunset had begun. Changgu smiled. He always smiled and god, Jinho loved that smile.

They walked for a while as the sky and the few clouds got a pink, orange and purple hue, almost like a painting. Changgu suddenly stopped.

“The sky is beautiful right now! Can I take pictures of you?”

“Shouldn’t you rather take pictures of the sky?”

“Why photograph one pretty thing when I can have two pretty things in one photo?”

Jinho’s face heated up and stood there, watching Changgu get his phone out and walk around until he’d found the right angle.

“Hey, pretty one, smile a bit for me, will you?” Changgu said and Jinho laughed, starting to grow comfortable and posing for the camera, laughing at himself and laughing at Changgu’s exaggerated reactions.

He started getting playful and jumped around, waving his arms and giggling loudly, even blowing kisses at the camera.

“Perfect!” Changgu said, seemingly satisfied.

“Can I take some of you too?” Jinho asked and the other boy smiled.

“Of course!”

So Changgu started posing, throwing his hands into the air and smiling widely. Jinho was wondering why the camera couldn’t even capture his beauty properly.

“Do I look good?” Changgu asked as he was done. Jinho smiled, taking his hand.

“You look amazing.”

He then impulsively leaned up to peck Changgu’s cheek, only realising what he’d done when the other boy blushed, touching his face dumbfoundedly.

They didn’t say anything else, they just held hands again and made the rest of their way to Jinho’s house while the sky turned darker.

When they arrived at Jinho’s house they hugged.

“Thanks for bringing me home.” Jinho said.

“Anything for you.”

When Jinho got into his room he squealed, burying his face in a pillow.

An hour later he received a message, a video Changgu had sent him. It was a video of him posing and laughing loudly. Jinho felt flustered.

-I call this one ‘Fairy having fun’

-I didn’t know you were taking a video!

-You look adorable in it.  
-I just wanted to capture how sweet you are.

-I feel embarrassed…  
-You won’t show anyone right?

-I won’t.  
-Those are our memories!  
-No one else’s.

-I had fun!  
-Thank you so much.  
-Being with you makes me so happy.

-Being with you makes me happy too.  
-You’re amazing, Jo Jinho.  
-You’re so mesmerising…  
-I could watch you jump around all day.  
-And your laugh <3  
-Your laugh is my favorite.

-You’re cute, Changgu.

-You’re cuter!!!!!!!  
-You should sleep soon, okay?

-Yes, mom!  
-See you tomorrow <3

-Sweet dreams, little fairy <3

-  
Before Jinho knew they were performing the final scene, the spotlights blinding them and hiding the audience. He heard Hwitaek stop singing as Changgu took over and Jinho tried to focus even harder on the choreography.

And suddenly it was over. Suddenly they were in freeze. Suddenly they gathered in a row to bow. Suddenly the audience applauded loudly and Jinho heard their cheers and wondered if anything had ever made him more nervous than performing this play.

Now he found himself in between Changgu and Yanan, both of them holding his hands tightly as they listened to the applause die down.

“I would like to say something.” Hwitaek suddenly said loudly, making everyone go silent to listen to him.

“Well, firstly, it’s an honour for me, for all of us, to have performed this and we’re excited to do it again tomorrow. But preparing this was a lot of hard work for us and… I don’t know how many times we all started yelling at each other over the past ten months… but there was also a lot of laughter involved. This was a special time for all of us, we got new friendships - even relationships - and we managed to become a group where everyone can depend on each other. I’m very thankful.”

Everyone on the stage was smiling by now, some were even tearing up. Jinho especially felt his lips quivering and tried to blink the tears away. Then Hwitaek continued.

“However, none of this would have happened or worked out this well if it wasn’t for Jinho. I think I can speak for everyone here that without his guidance we wouldn’t have made it. I don’t know anyone who is as passionate about this as him and he never stopped working on the play and helping all of us. I feel very proud to call him my friend and I think he deserves some extra love and praise now.”

It was overwhelming, everyone clapped and the cast members cheered loudly.

This was all it needed for Jinho to burst into tears. He tried to cover his face with his sleeve as he cried but it didn’t really work.

Before he knew Changgu had pulled him into his embrace, holding him tightly and rubbing his back.

“Stop crying, Jinho. You did it! Look, everyone is so proud of you.” Changgu’s voice was low enough that only Jinho heard it and Jinho just buried his face in the other’s chest as he kept sobbing.

Changgu led him carefully as the entire cast went backstage to meet one last time before going out to meet their families. Jinho wiped his face dry and just let Changgu caress his neck.

“I’m so proud of you guys.” he said, voice raw as they all stood in a circle. Shinwon and Yanan came to hug him tightly and suddenly everyone was tangled up in a huge group hug.

Then everyone left. Except for Jinho. Changgu was about to go out too when JInho called out his name.

The taller boy turned towards him and smiled.

“Everything okay, little fairy?”

Jinho smiled too, stepping closer and wrapping his arms around the other boy’s neck. The distance between them was incredibly small now and Changgu loosely put his hands on Jinho’s waist.

“You were amazing.” Jinho said.

“We all were. But Hwitaek is right, it was all because of you. You worked so hard for it.”

“I can’t believe it’s been ten months. We met ten months ago.” Jinho muttered. Changgu chuckled.

“I don’t want to let go of you, ever.” he said, suddenly sounding very serious. Jinho nodded.

They looked at each other for a while, no words were needed. Jinho could feel Changgu’s rapid heartbeat as their chests were pressed together.

“I’m going to kiss you.” Jinho whispered suddenly.

Changgu looked down at his lips and then back up. “Okay.” he breathed out.

Jinho leaned up and his lips met with Changgu’s. And they kissed. They kissed gently, over and over. He does have smooth lips Jinho thought but his mind was clouded and he seemed to forget everything else.

Changgu tasted of strawberries and chocolate cake and Jinho was afraid he might get addicted to the feeling of kissing him.

When they parted, Changgu looked at him with wide eyes and a shy smile.

“Wow!” he whispered.

“Let’s go, our parents must be waiting.” Jinho said quietly and the other boy nodded, letting go of him and walking ahead.

Jinho lost Changgu out of sight when they entered the crowded hall so he went to look for his parents instead. He found them and they both hugged him tightly.

“Jinho, honey, that was amazing! You blow my mind every time, baby.” his mother said, ruffling his hair and smiling widely at him.

“I say we should go and get some food at your favorite place. What do you say, kid?” his father asked.

“That sounds great.” Jinho responded. But before they could start to make their way outside someone appeared next to him and bowed slightly.

Jinho stared at Changgu, baffled.

“Mom, Dad, this is Changgu.” Jinho started, stuttering. “He’s-”

“His boyfriend. I’m his boyfriend.” Changgu stated. Jinho’s mouth gaped open.

His mother was the first to react.

“Oh! You’re the boy Yanan told me about.”

“Yanan’s a tattletale.” Jinho answered, frowning. Changgu laughed.

“I hope he told you good things at least.”

Jinho’s mother smiled, stepping closer and cupping Changgu’s face to turn it around slightly. Then she pinched his cheek.

“What a handsome boy! I think you’re out of my son’s league. How did he manage to get such a sweet catch?” she laughed now and Changgu laughed with her.

“Ma’am, I think you are underestimating your son. I think he’s beautiful. But that is no surprise with such parents.”

“Damn, Jinho, you got yourself a charmer.” his father said and Changgu smiled.

“Changgu, you have to come over and try my food soon. Do we have a deal?” Jinho’s mother continued and the curly headed boy nodded.

“I definitely will.”

“Can you guys head to the car already? I have to speak to Changgu.” Jinho asked and his parents nodded, smiling. Then they left, waving at Changgu.

When they were gone Jinho pulled the other boy into a quiet corner. The taller one looked worried.

“Did I say something wrong?”

“No- I mean, no! Of course not. Just… we’re boyfriends?”

“I mean I thought… well, I thought we didn’t have to clarify it. But if you don’t want it then that’s okay I-” Changgu stuttered now, looking down. Jinho grabbed his chin and made him look into his eyes.

“I want it. Of course I want it. I want to be your boyfriend.”

“Okay then.” Changgu smiled, leaning down to kiss the other boy once more. “I should go, my parents must be wondering where I went.”

Jinho nodded but they still ended up holding hands as they walked outside, hugging again before going to their parents’ cars.

“See you tomorrow!” Jinho shouted. His boyfriend waved.

And as he got into the car he couldn’t stop thinking about strawberries and chocolate cake.

**Author's Note:**

> This is my first full narration work at this length so please be gentle with me :( I just love these two and The Greatest Showman a lot.


End file.
